Great Is Thy Faithfulness!

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."-Lamentations 3:22,23.

In the book of Lamentations, Jeremiah writes in response of what he sees as God's people suffer. He's not complaining nor asking God why, instead he is celebrating because in the midst of the suffering, which is desevered, God still blesses his people. God loves us so much that even while punishing us he finds a way to bless us.

How many times have we sinned against God, yet, we seem to escape what could easily spell disaster for ourselves and even our families. It's painful to sometimes look back over our lives and remember the times we said an unkind word or acted out of anger against someone. We all go through storms and deal with problems as a direct result of decisions that we have made in our lives and so we really can't blame God for our condition. What happens, after a storm? We feel stronger and wiser, right? God could easily leave us in that storm but he doesn't. He rescues us not because we've had enough but because he loves us. That is why he sent his Son Jesus to die on the cross! God in all of his awesome greatness, willingly sacrificed his son to die for our sins, what a debt we owe, one that can never be repaid.

Today, let us challenge ourselves to take a moment to say, thank you, God, for showing us love even though we have not been loving. Let us take a moment before speaking, and acting, and ask, what would Jesus say and what would Jesus do? How wonderful it would be if we made an effort to show each other love in our words and our deeds. What a tremendous way that would be to say thank you to God for his many acts of love toward us.

Because of God's great love we are not consumed by sickness and death. Because of God's great love, we are not consumed by bankruptcy, foreclosure and poverty. Because of his compassion that never fails, our sickness' are healed, and death is not the end but a new beginning of life with Him. Because of his unfailing compassion, we can still have shelter, food and clothing amidst what looks like financial disaster. God's compassions are new every morning! Great is His faithfulness! Isn't it comforting to know that we serve a God that loves us in spite of ourselves. Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is His faithfulness. Praise God!!!!!

Prayerfully,
Cynthia Fields

Even The Crumbs, Lord!

"Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, 'Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.' Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, 'Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.' He answered, 'I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.' The woman came and knelt before him. 'Lord, help me!' she said. He replied, 'It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs.' 'Yes, Lord,' she said, 'but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.' Then Jesus answered, 'Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.' And her daughter was healed from that very hour." Matthew 15:21-28.

I love this story in Matthew 15 about the faith of the Canannite Woman. It's a familiar story but each time I read it I receive a new word from God. Now, I'm not professing to be a bible scholar but I'm reminded that God requires us to be faithful. As Mother's Day approaches, I realized that this was a good story. This woman, like all of us who are mothers had spent considerable time trying to get help for her child. She'd done all she could for this demon-possessed child and she was determined to get to the One who could heal her daughter. It didn't matter that she had no doubt gotten on the disciples last nerves or that they tried to convince Jesus to brush her off and send her away. If it was the last thing she did, she was going to take her petition straight to Jesus himself.

As mothers we are willing to do the same thing. We pray for our children, grandchildren, husbands, friends, and even when we don't see or hear an immediate answer we keep praying. Our faith has to be just that strong and in the midst of waiting for God to answer we must draw on the strength of that faith. Faith is confidence that God will do just what he said he would do. There is absolutely nothing, and no situation too hard for God. Even when the world would tell us that disaster is the only outcome we must hold on. Isn't it good to know that no matter how long and hard we pray, we never get on God's nerves! He never ignores us or turns his back on us and he knows just how much we can stand for he has already provided for a victorious outcome. My favorite part of this story is the dialogue between Jesus and the Canaanite woman when she demonstrates her faith, "but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." Wow, she knew that it didn't take much from God to work a miracle in her daughter's life. Just a small crumb, just a thought from him was all it would take to heal her.

It is so good to know that we serve a God that blesses far beyond the crumbs. He blesses us so abundantly, far more than we asked or even imagined. So my sisters, keep praying, keep being those mothers who are not afraid to lay your concerns at the Master's feet. May God bless you and keep you and have a great Mother's Day!

For Him Alone,

Cynthia